Refrigerating apparatus



` compressor, and it has condenser. The latter contains Patented May l2, 1942 UNITED STATES PA'ii-:NT o

nEmGERATiNG APPARATUS .Edward R. Wolfert, Springield, Mass., assignor to Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company, East Pittsb of Pennsylvaniaurgh, Pa., a corporation Application March 8, 1939, Serial-No. 260,513

(Cl. 23o- 58) 6 Claims.

My invention relates to refrigerating apparatus, more particularly. to an enclosed motor compressor unit therefor in which the motor is cooled by the refrigerant vapor flowing to the for an object to provide improved apparatus. I

A more particular object is to avoid entrainment, in the stream of refrigerant vapor nowing in contact with the motor, of lubricating oil escaping from amotor bearing.

- These and other objects are eiiected by my invention as will be apparent from the followbear'ing 25 and which maybe provided with gos-.

impelling vanes 3|.

The frame member I8. is, formed with an openi ing 32 in the wall 22, which opening constitutes a vapor outlet for the motor housing and a vapor i inlet for the compressor. The frame member I8 is further formed with a passage 33 extending'4 from the opening 32 to the 'several cylinders of the compressor. The passage 33 includes a vhoriing description and claims taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this application, in which:

The single gure shows-the motor compressor unit and the condenser in vertical section, the remainder of the refrigerant circuit being shown diagrammatically. y Referring to the drawing in detail, the refrigerating system comprises an evaporator I0,

an expansion valve I3 for regulating the ow of refrigerant to the evaporator and for reducingthe pressure thereof, and a condensing unit indicated generally by the reference numeral II and enclosed in a casing I2. The casing I2'is.

wall 22 and open at the top. The bottom wall 22 is formed with an oil drain opening 23. The

motor compressor unit further includes a shaftl 24 `jouma1ed in bearings 25 and 26 attachedV tothe main frame member I8. The bearing 25 is disposed in the lower portion of the motor housing and is bolted to the wall .22. The bearing 28 is mounted on the lower end of the member I8. The-motor includes a stator 2I,.which is pressed intothe inner cylindrical surface ofthe motor housing 2i, the latter serving as a frame for the motor. The stator is formed to provide a plurality of circumferentially spaced refrigerant passages 28. The motor further includes a rotor 29 which is overhung on the shaft 24 above the 55'A zontai branch or portion 34 and a vertical portion 35 extending somewhat below the portion 34. An

opening 33 is formed in the bottom wall of the portion 35. The plane on which .the section through the opening 32 and the passage portion 33 is taken is disposed forwardly of the'plane on which the remaining section is taken. The

compressor includes a cylinder h'ead 31 and valve assemblies 38 which may be of any suitably known construction and which arenot` therefore, describedin detail.

The bottom portion of the chamber l5 con; 7

stitutes an oil reservoir containing a. body of oil between the rotor and the stator.

ries an oil pump 4I which isdriven by the shaft 24 andwhich is immersed inthe oil 39. .The oil pump supplies oil to the several bearings, including' the bearing 25, through a passage 43 and a passage 44 drilled in the shaft 24.

In'the operation of` the above-described refrigerating system, the refrigerant vaporized in the evaporator III-flows through a suction conduit.`

45, a iitting 46 and a strainer 41 into the upper end of the chamber I5. It then iiows downwardlyin---contact with the stator and rotor of the motor, through the passages 28 and the gap From the lower end of the motor housing, it flows through the opening 32 and the passage 33 to the compressor cylinders, wherein it is' compressed. The compressed refrigerant is then 'discharged through a conduit 43 to the condenser chamber I3 wherein the same is condensed by the cooling coilI'I. 'I'he condensed refrigerant is then conv'eyed through a tting 43, a liquid line 5I and the expansionvalve I3 to theevaporator I8.

As the refrigerant vapor ows in contact with lthe stator and the rotor, it 'extracts heat therefrom and thereby maintains the motor. sumcientiy cool. The motor housing also serves vas an oil separating chamber, as' described and claimed in my application Serial No. 243,410, iiled 'December 1, 1938. However, prior to the present invention, .dimculty was encountered due to'entrainment of oil from the bearing 25 in the reirigerant. I'h'e oil escaped trom the top ortho bearing 25 and spilled over the outside'of the bearing to the bottom of the motor housing and into the passage portion l5 in contact .with the refrigerant flowing therethrough. Due to the relatively great quantity of cil thus flowing, a conslderable amount of oil was entrained in the refrigerant vapor and carried into the cylinders.

To overcome this difllculty, according to the present invention, the bearing 25 is formed with an annular dam or'weir 52, thereby forming an annular recess 53 which is adapted to receive the oil escaping from the top of the bearing surface. The bearing 25 is further formed with vertical passages 5lcored or otherwise formed therein and extending from the recess 53 to an opening 55 in the wall 22.

The oil discharged from the top of the bearing surface of the bearing 25 is received by the recess 5I and then flows by gravity, out of contact with the stream of refrigerant, through the passages 5I, the opening 55 and then through the bottom portion of the chamber i5 to the body of oil 39. Thus, the oil is drained to the reservoir out of contact with the stream of refrigerant, and entrainment of oil from the bearing 25 in the refrigerant is thereby substantially avoided.

What I claim is:

1. A direct-connected, vertical shaft, motor and compressor unit comprising a compressor and a motor for driving the same, the unit being constructed and arranged so that refrigerant vapor to be compressed in the compressor first ows in contact with the working parts of the motor to cool the same, the unit having a bearing disposed adjacent the path of the refrigerant vapor flowing to the compressor in such position that oil spilling from the top of the bearing would spill into said path of refrigerant vapor, means for supplying oil to said bearing, saidbearing having an annular recess at the top for collecting oil from the bearing, and the unit having an oil drain passage formed therein extending from said recess to a region outside said stream so as to avoid entraining of said oil in said stream, and means for supplying oli to said bearing other than through said oil drain passage.

2. In refrigerating apparatus, a vertical shaft,- direct-connected motor compressor unit having a fluid-tight casing enclosing the motor and the compressor, the unit beingarranged so that the 50 refrigerant vapor to be compressed first flows in contact with the motor to cool the same, the unit including a bearing for the motor disposed adjacent the stream of refrigerant vapor flowing to the' compressor in such position that any oil which might spill from the top' of the bearing would contact said refrigerant vapor, `means for supplying oil to said bearing, said bearing having an oil drain passage formed therein for drain- 'ing oil to a point where it will not intermingle with said stream of refrigerant vapor and the upper portion oi.' said bearing. being formed so that the oil escaping from the'top of the bearing surface flows into said passage and does not spill over the outer surface of the bearing, and means casacca for supplying oil to said bearing other than through said oil drain passage.

3. In refrigerating apparatus, an enclosed, vertical shaft, motor and compressor unit comprising 5 va compressor and a drive motor disposed above the same and connected thereto, the unit includ-y ing a frame member providing a compressor housing, a motor housing, and a compressor inlet passage having its inlet in communication with the lower end of the motor housing, the unit being constructed and arranged so that refrigerant vapor to be compressed first flows downwardly through the motor housing in contact with the working parts of the motor to cool the same and l5 then enters said compressor-inlet passage, the

unit having a bearing disposed adjacent the path of said refrigerant vapor, an oil reservoir adjacent the lowr endofthe unit, and means for delivering oil from the reservoir to'said bearing,

the unit having an annular recess adjacent the top of said bearing for receiving oil from the bearing and a passage closed to the stream of said refrigerant vapor for draining oil from said annular recess to a point outside of said stream from -\which the oil may drain to said reservoir.

4. A motor and compressor unit as set forth in claim 3, wherein said annular recess and saidV passage are formed in said bearing.

-5. In refrigerating apparatus, a motor and compressor unit constructed 4and arranged so that the refrigerant vapor flows in contact with the working parts of the motor to cool'the same before entering the compressor, said unit having a bearing one end of which is'disposed adjacent the stream of refrigerant vapor in such position that any oil spilling from the bearing at said end would contact the refrigerant vapor in said stream, said bearing having an annular space for collecting oil escaping from the bearing surfaces 40 at said one end, said unit having a passage extending from said annular space to a region outside said stream of refrigerant vapor for conveying oil from the former to the latter to avoid its entrainment in the stream of refrigerant vapor,

and means for supplying oil to said bearing other than through said passage.

6. In refrigerating apparatus, a motor andcompressor unit comprising a compressor and a motor for driving the same, the unit being ar- 4 ranged so that refrigerant vapor to be compressed first flows in contact with the working parts of the motor to cool the same, the unit having a bearing one end of which is disposed adjacent the 5 path of said refrigerant Vvapor in such position that any oil spilling from said end of the bearing would contact said refrigerant vapor, means for supplying oil to said bearing, and means other than said oil supply means for collecting oil from no said one end of the bearing before it becomes entrained in the refrigerant vapor and draining the same out of contact with said flowing refrigerant vapor to a yregion outside of the path thereof.

EDWARD R. WOLF'ERT. 

